Dean Norris To Star In CBS’ ‘Under The Dome’ Series
By NELLIE ANDREEVA

CBS’ upcoming summer series Under The Dome has cast another key role. Breaking Bad‘s Dean Norris is set to star opposite Mike Vogel in the 13-episode series from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin and Stephen King based on King’s bestselling 2009 novel. Under The Dome is set in Chester’s Mill, a small New England town suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. The town’s inhabitants must deal with surviving the post-apocalyptic conditions while searching for answers to what this barrier is, where it came from and if and when it will go away. Norris will play Big Jim, the successful owner of Chester’s Mill’s used car dealership who also is town councilman, an office he takes seriously. Norris, managed by Industry Entertainment’s Keith Addis, is wrapping a five-year stint on AMC’s Breaking Bad, which has proven a popular talent pool for pilots this season, with Norris’ co-stars Anna Gunn, Betsy Brandt and Jonathan Banks also set for pilot roles.

Poaching a Breaking Bad castmember? Not bad.

Surprised they're not going for bigger name actors, though. Granted, TWD didn't have any name actors either, but at least that had the draw of zombies.

Rachelle Lefevre has been cast as the female lead opposite Mike Vogel and Dean Norris in Under The Dome, CBS’ 13-episode series from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin and Stephen King based on King’s bestselling 2009 novel. The drama is set in Chester’s Mill, a small New England town suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. Lafevre will play Julia, an investigative reporter who’s just moved to Chester’s Mill from Chicago with her husband. CBS TV Studios-produced Under The Dome is exec produced by Neal Baer, King, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Stacey Snider, Jack Bender and writer Brian K. Vaughan. Niels Arden Oplev will direct the first episode. The project reunites Lefevre’s with CBS, CBS Studios and showrunner Baer after co-starring in the 2012 series A Gifted Man.

"When you're under those intense circumstances, people's good or evil hearts may come out more than in everyday life," showrunner Neal Baer said. "That intensity under that magnifying glass gives us the opportunity to explore what people would really do."

ANAHEIM -- CBS unveiled the first footage of its summer big-swing Under the Dome to close out WonderCon on Saturday.

The short reel -- which offered footage mixed with interviews with the drama's cast and creators including Stephen King and Brian K. Vaughan -- featured the first appearance of the mysterious dome and how the town of Chester's Mill responds to the crashing planes, flying body parts, separated couples and more.

The summer series, which bows June 24 on CBS, follows residents in the community of Chester's Mill as they deal with the postapocalyptic conditions that ensue when a strange dome mysteriously encapsulates the town.

Producers -- including Neal Baer (A Gifted Man) and Jack Bender -- said Dome will be "cinematic" and as "big as possible" yet intimate and "character alive" as it can be. "It is big and there are big subjects in the show and big entertainment," Bender (Lost) told the packed ballroom.

Based on King's thick book -- it clocks in at more than 1,000 pages and takes place -- showrunner Baer said the 13-episode drama is split into three: faith ("This can't be real," "This won't last for too long"), fear ("Oh my God, what are we going to do") and fascism ("Who's going to maintain order when people run out of things").

"That gives us a guideline to dig into these stories and helps us root for characters, hate some of them and love characters and be passionate about them," Baer said, noting that the drama isn't a miniseries but instead a series that can run for multiple seasons.

For his part, genre king Vaughan (Lost, comic series Y: The Last Man) said the marriage of King, whose book provides the backbone of the series, and Steven Spielberg (whose company Amblin Entertainment is producing) was easy.

"Steven Spielberg is the world's ultimate optimist and Stephen King is the world's ultimate pessimist, but they're both humanists -- they both love their characters and it was easy to wed those two people since they both like writing about people," Vaughan said, noting he hopes King will cameo in the writers' room vs. on screen as he previously did on Sons of Anarchy.

While the book takes place over a couple of days, the series will stretch well beyond that, with King -- who has been highly involved and even name-checked Vaughan in the book -- has given the writers total freedom to take creative turns and expand the universe beyond the novel.

Baer noted Dome will explore the intense circumstances that present themselves when people are presented with impossible situation.

"When you're under those intense circumstances, people's good or evil hearts may come out more than in everyday life," he said. "That intensity under that magnifying glass gives us the opportunity to explore what people would really do."

"It's a parable for our times: can the sun shine through the dome? Can it rain? Those sound like climate issues and we can really explore that without being preachy," he said. "It's fun for us to think about what happens when you run out of Tide soap, what do you use? Who rises? Do you really need a banker under the dome? But farmers? Maybe you do."

Co-star Rachelle Lefevre noted Dome's concept brings up a question she asks herself frequently: What are the circumstances where I'd save myself and what are the circumstances where I'd sacrifice myself?" she said, whose character, Julia, in the book is a 50-year-old woman. "It's the living embodiment of those questions. We're going to get that scenario every week: Every character gets the chance to show you who they are with when they sacrifice or save themselves."

Added Vaughan of the similarities to the book: "Big Jim (played by Breaking Bad's Dean Norris) is pretty effing evil and we we're going to get you there. We've told [the cast] to be careful what you read. We'll get you there, but it might take some time."

Now CBS’ upcoming series adaptation of King’s Under the Dome is going to give the Fox animated hit a shout-out in return.

The backstory: King originally began work on his sprawling eco-parable bestseller in 1976, then shelved the project for a couple decades before picking it up again and ultimately publishing the novel in 2009. In the meantime, 20th Century Fox released The Simpsons Movie in 2007 with a broadly comic take on the same concept. Fox’s series The Simpsons then mocked the coincidence in a 2010 episode where Monty Burns begins to seal Springfield with a giant dome while brandishing a copy of King’s book before realizing this has already been done once before.

Now the upcoming series version of Under the Dome will throw a reference back to The Simpsons in its third episode. “We do make a reference to The Simpsons Movie,” showrunner Neal Baer told EW. “We have a ‘recharge party’ in episode 3 and the kids are watching it.”

There won’t be actual footage of the film in the scene, but it’s definitely in the script. “We make a verbal reference,” Baer teases.

CBS’ ‘Under The Dome’ Licensed In 200 International Markets
By NANCY TARTAGLIONE, International Editor

CBS‘ limited summer series Under The Dome bows in the U.S. on June 24. It’s also headed to 200 overseas markets, CBS Studios International said today. The 13-episode adaptation of the Stephen King novel is set in a small New England town that’s suddenly and inexplicably sealed off from the rest of the world by an enormous transparent dome. Global sales include the UK (Channel 5), Germany (ProSiebenSat1), France (M6), Italy (Rai Due), Australia (Network Ten) and Canada (Global Television). Individual airdates will vary by country, but CBS International says some networks will start rollout this summer. CBS Television Studios produces in association with Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Television. Neal Baer, King, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Stacey Snider, Jack Bender and scribe Brian K. Vaughan executive produce.

The casting of Hank from BB is SO ironic for the part of Big Jim. I didn't understand his casting at first, but it's starting to make sense after actually seeing him in the role. Lookin forward to it, this has to be one of my favorite books I've read in a long time.

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"No great genius has ever existed without some touch of madness." - Aristotle